Dear ATIA members:

Effective today the State of Alaska has changed the funding mechanism for the Alaska Destination Tourism Marketing Program for FY12. In essence, this year’s $12 million appropriation for tourism marketing has been directed to the Alaska Department of Commerce, Community & Economic Development (DCCED) rather than to ATIA, as in past years. ATIA and DCCED have been working cooperatively to prepare for this change. Our mutual goal is to minimize the impact to Alaskan businesses.

As of today a formal agreement between ATIA and DCCED is still being negotiated. Both parties have stated their desire that the FY12 program proceed without disruption once the final agreement is signed. In anticipation of this agreement, last night the ATIA Board of Directors and the State of Alaska agreed to assign ATIA’s previous vendor contracts to the State for most domestic marketing services. These include advertising, website, public relations, research and fulfillment. Please know that both ATIA and the State of Alaska are working diligently and in good faith to finalize our revised working relationship.

Short-Term Effects to ATIA Marketing Members

Because a final agreement is still in progress we regret that there will be short-term effects to ATIA members. We hope the following changes will only affect you for the next week or so:

• While TravelAlaska.com will continue to operate without disruption, ATIA is temporarily unable to accept new banner ads or travel specials or extend existing contracts for these services. Those banner ads and specials that have been previously purchased by our members will remain on the site until the end of your existing contract. Should you wish to modify or remove any such ads, ATIA staff can do so for you.
• The cooperative leads program is temporarily being suspended. New email or direct mail labels lists will not be generated nor will email broadcasts be conducted from July 1, 2011 until an ATIA/DCCED agreement is finalized. For those members with weekly or biweekly reoccurring orders, your business will only be billed for lists pulled and delivered through June 30, 2011.
• New ads for the 2012 Vacation Planner & TravelAlaska.com are unable to be accepted during this time.

Unchanged Operations:

• The ATIA office is open and all staff continue to be available to work with your business during this period. You may call us at 907-929-2842 Monday-Friday, 8am to 5pm. Please note that the office will be closed on Monday, July 4th for the holiday and will reopen on Tuesday, July 5th.
• TravelAlaska.com will continue to operate without disruption as noted above.
• Basic operations will continue to service public relations, trade marketing and international marketing however most new FY12 programs are on hold pending the final agreement.
• Your membership status in the ATIA Trade Association is unaffected.

How to Contact ATIA

ATIA members who have questions or want an update regarding the status of negotiations between ATIA and the State of Alaska are welcome to contact our office at 907-929-2842 or write advertising@alaskatia.org.

Watch for ATIA newsletters for further updates in the coming days. Thank you for your patience during this period and your continued support. We look forward to working on behalf of your business long into the future.